WUC-program

POSTER SESSION
RHEA SABLANI, Mapping and Characterizing large scutellar
node1 (lsn1) in Maize
Maize (corn) is an important industrial crop that can be grown
in various environments. The corn mutant large scutellar
node1 (lsn1) exhibits atypical seedling development and
severe vascular defects. Seedlings with the lsn1 mutation
have a short primary root with a flattened tip and a bulging
scutellar node between the root and shoot. In order to further
characterize the lsn1 mutant, I used traditional genetic
approaches and genome sequencing to identify the causative
gene. Genetic crosses using lsn1 mutant plants revealed that
the mutation is likely recessive, as two copies of the
lsn1 mutant allele were needed to observe defects. To
investigate the connection of lsn1 with the plant
growth hormone auxin, I also crossed lsn1 plants
with auxin mutant plants. Computational analyses
enabled me to map and characterize the lsn1
causative gene to develop a better understanding
of its role in regulation of organ development.
Faculty Sponsor: Brit Moss
SUZANNE SCHMITZ, Investigating Light
Affinity in Drosophila americana and Drosophila
novamexicana
In order to explore how habitat can
influence the behavior of a species, I
studied two closely related species of Drosophila that differ
mainly in their pigmentation and habitat. The lighter colored
Drosophila novamexicana is naturally found in hotter, drier
environments with more sunlight available. Conversely, its
darker-colored relative, Drosophila americana, is associated
with colder environments with less sunlight. I studied how
the two species differed in their affinity for light versus
dark environments. I placed flies in a sealed chamber and
recorded their daily movements between light and dark areas
of the chamber. Despite the differing natural light of the two
species’ native habitats, I found that D. novamexicana and D.
americana did not vary significantly in their preference for light
or dark conditions. Future research on additional environmental
variables, such as temperature, could provide interesting insights
into these flies’ behavior and processes of speciation.
Faculty Sponsor: Arielle Cooley
OTTO SCHWARM, Compiling LIGO Coherence Data
The National Science Foundation’s Laser Interferometer
Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) is capable of detecting
minute ripples in the fabric of spacetime, which are caused
by energetic astronomical events such as black holes and
neutron stars colliding millions of light-years away. Since the
effect of these ripples is small by the time they reach Earth,
LIGO uses tools like Gabriele Vajente’s Brute Force Coherence
(BruCo) to calculate the mathematical coherence between a
target data channel and over 4,000 other data channels, in
order to distinguish experimental noise from gravitational
wave signals. BruCo generates complex output, with only a
small amount of useful data among tens of thousands of plots.
My research presents an algorithm that selects the top five
most interesting channels and compiles their coherence data
into a single plot, vastly simplifying BruCo’s ease-of-use.
Faculty Sponsor: Gregory Vaughn-Ogin
KATIE SISSON, Epifaunal Surface Cover on Pilings in Bocas del Toro:
How Do Age and Urban Proximity Affect Community Compositions
Throughout the Archipelago?
As human population increases, mankind shifts to occupy
coastal land, creating a demand for artificial structures to
fortify coastlines. The Bocas del Toro archipelago in Panama
is a prime example of a coastal populace undergoing
rapid expansion due to tourism influx. My study examines
community composition of organisms on PVC pilings of
various ages and proximities to the urban core in order
to determine correlation between urban proximity and
epifaunal community composition. I analyzed visual
quadrats and took circumference measurements of pilings
to determine community biomass, calculating Bray-Curtis
dissimilarity indices across sites. I found significant
values for both urban-rural and old-new comparisons,
and discovered that key taxa significantly
contribute to this dissimilarity. In contrast, I found
biomass variations to be insignificant, indicating
that old-new and urban-rural gradients do not
affect overall epifaunal growth mass.
Faculty Sponsor: Delbert Hutchinson
SEGUN SODIPO, Are the Pollen Types Consumed by
Flower-Generalist Bees the Same as Those They Collect?
Adult female bees need pollen: they carry it on their scopal hairs
to the nest to feed larvae, and they also consume it themselves.
Among the 4,000 bee species in the United States, many are
flower generalists, wherein females collect pollen from many
different unrelated plants. I set out to determine whether
flower-generalist bee species collect the same pollen that they
consume. During the summer of 2018, I collected females of
three native bee species at various sites in Walla Walla County.
Each pollen-carrying female was dissected to remove the gut.
Pollen from both the gut and scopal hairs was mounted on
microscope slides, and the pollen species compositions were
compared. In general, I found that bees consumed pollen from
more plant species than they collected for their nests. This
leads to a question for future investigation: why are bees more
selective of the pollen they collect for their young?
Faculty Sponsor: Heidi Dobson
EMILY SPRADLING, Pups and Positivity: Evaluating the
Impact of Animals on Well-Being
Companionship between humans and animals has occurred
for 15,000 years. Is there a reason for it beyond the
utilitarian? The growing popularity of emotional-support
animals suggests that there is. My study evaluated the
impact of exposure to animals on well-being. I examined
pre- and post-test levels of well-being and happiness of 42
participants who were asked to look at dog photos, watch
dog videos, or interact with a friendly dog for 10 minutes.
The results of my study indicate that participants are
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